SLAMABAD -- Pakistan has expressed gratitude to China for helping the country in the evacuation of its citizens stranded in Sudan, said the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Pakistan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement on Twitter on Friday night that a batch of 216 Pakistani nationals had arrived in Jeddah city of Saudi Arabia from Port Sudan aboard the Chinese navy vessel Weishanhu.

"We are grateful to our Chinese friends for this gesture of support and friendship," added the ministry.

On Saturday morning, the ministry released another statement saying that another batch of 97 Pakistani nationals from Port Sudan has arrived at Jinnah International Airport in the country's southern port city of Karachi via Jeddah.

According to the ministry, the people came back home from Jeddah aboard an aircraft of the Pakistan Air Force.

"Government of Pakistan will continue to facilitate the safe return of stranded Pakistanis," added the ministry.

Earlier on Friday, the spokesperson of the ministry Mumtaz Zahra Baloch said the Pakistani side was engaging with "friendly countries in the region for facilitating this process by providing transport to shift Pakistanis from Sudan."